In some handheld toothbrushes, tufts of bristles arranged on a ring in the mid-region of the brush head project from the surface close to the brushing side. The tufts extend in opposition to the circumferential direction in an inclined relationship to the surface of the brush head. Disposed radially inside these tufts are further tufts that are arranged on a second ring of smaller diameter and are equally inclined in the same direction as the outer tufts.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a handheld toothbrush in which, during brushing, a maximum possible number of bristle tufts easily penetrate between the teeth and perform a thorough cleaning operation. Preferably, this occurs not only during an up and down movement, but also during a back and forth movement of the handheld toothbrush. Furthermore it is also an object to clean during brushing the sides of the teeth particularly thoroughly.